Here, we take a step-by-step look at tracing the legislative history of a Maryland statute. In many cases, print resources mentioned herein have online analogues (and vice-versa). Occasionally online information providers will offer a disclaimer to the effect that the material is unofficial, or not to be cited as authoritative in, e.g., court filings. If that is indeed what you intend it for, then check and cite to the print version.
Finally, armed with the bill number from your prior steps, you can check other resources--some online, some not, depending on how old your bill is.
The General Assembly Website contains bill tracking information back to the 1996 Regular Session. Here, you can search by bill number, sponsor, subject matter, committee, or statutes affected. Both successful and unsuccessful bills will be returned with a search.
The State Law Library has been busily digitizing legislative history documents you will find useful for both rule and statute research. Reports of the Rules Committee of the Maryland Judiciary--the body charged with enacting the state's rules of court--are available back to 1947, while agendas of the Committee have been digitized back to 1997. Proceedings of the Maryland Judicial Conference from 1947-97 are also available online. Often, a statute is an outgrowth of the findings of a special task force, and the State Law Library also maintains .pdf copies of those reports.
Occasionally, the Maryland State Bar Association comments on pending legislation. Those comments have been published in the Transactions, Program and Committee Reports series since 1966, and in the Report of the Annual Meeting of the Maryland State Bar Association prior to 1966. The Law Library has a selection of the earlier volumes on site, while the Maryland State Law Library maintains a comprehensive collection up to 1991.
A number of other resources (e.g., materials from the Legislative Policy Committee, Reports of the Code Revision Committee, Reports of the Legislative Council) are available through the State Law Library in Annapolis, although a phone call to the their Reference Department at (410) 260-1430 may be able to save you a trip.
